BEJAR, Spain — Hundreds of firefighters supported by helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft battled Saturday to contain one of Spain’s deadliest wildfires in recent years after the death toll rose to at least 12.
Emergency officials said lighter winds and higher humidity had improved conditions, but the fire’s scale continued to hamper containment efforts. The blaze has burned about 66 square kilometers (25 square miles) of forest and farmland in Almeria province, an area roughly the size of Manhattan.
Antonio Sanz, head of Andalusia’s emergency services, said crews carried out controlled burns overnight along the fire’s perimeter after the blaze erupted late Thursday near the Sierra de Los Filabres mountains during an intense heatwave.
Authorities said most of the victims, believed to be foreign nationals, died after ignoring shelter-in-place orders. Seven people were killed after abandoning their vehicles and attempting to escape on foot.
Regional authorities said four of the victims are believed to be British because their burned vehicle had a right-hand steering wheel. Autopsies have been completed and DNA samples collected to confirm the victims’ identities.
Officials evacuated 1,448 people from 11 affected areas as the fire spread rapidly.
One evacuee, Jeffrey Kember, described driving through walls of flames after fleeing with his wife from their farmhouse while trying to help a neighbor with two toddlers.
Spanish authorities also arrested two people for violating evacuation orders and returning to a high-risk area. Search teams continue to comb the affected area for possible victims.
Justice Minister Félix Bolaños attributed the fire’s intensity to the climate emergency, saying the blaze advanced at speeds of up to 100 meters per minute at its peak.
Spain has experienced increasingly severe heatwaves in recent years, with temperatures frequently exceeding 40 degrees Celsius. Officials say hot, dry and windy conditions have fueled larger and more destructive wildfires.
Elsewhere in Europe, several wildfires remained active in France as another heatwave gripped the country. French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said 32 people had been arrested since the start of the summer in connection with wildfires, while President Emmanuel Macron said most fires were caused by human activity.
More than 25,000 hectares have burned in France so far this year, about twice the area affected during the same period in 2025. France is currently experiencing its third major heatwave of the summer, with temperatures reaching 40 degrees Celsius in several regions.
Source: Saudi Gazette